Tipsheet

MTG to Walensky: Will You Be on Pfizer or Moderna's Board When You Step Down?

Leah Barkoukis
Leah Barkoukis  |  June 13, 2023 4:00 PM

Outgoing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director Dr. Rochelle Walensky appeared before the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic on Tuesday to answer a range of questions from lawmakers about the agency’s policies and decisions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rep. James Comer pressed Walensky about whether the agency worked with social media companies to censor objections to the vaccine online. Instead of answering, however, Walensky evaded the question by pointing to ongoing litigation.

“Did the CDC work with private companies to influence the censorship of dissent about vaccines?" Comer wondered. 

"That topic is one that is under litigation in the courts so I will not be speaking to that," Walensky replied. "The most important thing that has gotten us out of this pandemic is our vaccine and how well they work and how safe they are."

Republican lawmakers also questioned Walensky about how much pressure the agency faced from teachers unions and how much influence American Federation of Teachers boss Randi Weingarten had with her personally. Last week, newly revealed texts between the two showed them discussing sections of the school reopening guideline that concerned the union, which was ultimately changed. 

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Rep. Jim Jordan also confronted Walensky about her previous statements about the vaccine that he said misled the American people.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, meanwhile, pressed her on reports in the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, including for myocarditis, miscarriages, and stillbirths, which she called a "largely ignored issue."

Greene ended her time with a fiery question about where Walensky plans to get a job when she's done. 

"Are you going to be on the board of either Pfizer or Moderna? Because you've done one hell of a job at making sure that they've made a lot of money," she said. 


Walensky, whose last day with the agency is June 30, said she doesn't have plans after she steps down.